Najma Muhammad, a 31-year-old entrepreneur, lost her e-commerce hair care business when a large fire tore through the west London warehouse where her stock and equipment were stored. She had built the brand over roughly two years after being forced to leave her job as a nursing assistant on Harley Street because of thalassemia, an inherited blood disorder that caused severe hair loss, insomnia and heart palpitations. The blaze destroyed everything connected to the business, marking a devastating blow to years of work.

The fire ripped through a warehouse complex on Oxgate Lane in Brent, north-west London, with around 150 firefighters battling for hours to bring it under control and nearby residents evacuated. Inside were specialist equipment, product formulations, official documents and between £40,000 and £50,000 of new stock awaiting a major relaunch. Najma, who normally worked at the warehouse at night, was not present that evening because her uncle had recently died. She described collapsing to her knees and watching drone footage of the fire for hours.